Broken and Bonded
by SiriusIsMyPuppy
Summary: Normally, I would put a summary because I like and appreciate summaries too, but I just can't think of one for this story. Read, review and subscribe, lovies! Let me know what you think. : -SIMP


_**Broken and Bonded**_

_**A/N: As always, anything you recognise is not mine; anything you don't most likely is. Sadly, I don't have a good enough summary to type out for this story without feeling like a complete and utter fool, so you'll just have to read and let me know if you enjoy it. So, yeah, read, review and subscribe lovies. :) -SIMP**_

Sirius stood on all fours in the dark alley between the garage and high privacy fence on Magnolia Crescent. He appeared as a large black dog, being in his Animagus form – or would appear as a dog if anyone could see him. He was waiting for a closer glimpse of Harry. He had seen the boy stalk angrily out of his aunt and uncle's house on Privet Drive, but had decided to hide. Merlin forbid anyone should see him.

He soon heard footsteps, heavy breathing, and a trunk being dragged along pavement. Harry stopped right in front of the large, bear-like black dog looking worried and anxious. He turned around but looked back over his shoulder. Sirius shifted his weight; his paws were killing him. Harry turned back around and almost immediately turned back and peered down the alleyway, narrowing his eyes. Sirius took a step forward to get a better look at his godson, his grey eyes catching the glare of the streetlamps just outside the alley.

Harry started and tripped backwards, landing hard in the road. He scraped his hand and it was bleeding. Sirius hardly had time to react before there was a loud _BANG_ and blinding headlights lit the street in front of him. He bounded away into the darkness, away from Harry and away from the Knight Bus.

_Shit, _he thought to himself. _Shit, shit, shit. That was too close_. He wouldn't be able to try seeing Harry again until the school term started, and even then he wasn't sure he dared to risk it. He would make those calculations when the time came, he decided. He soon ran into a field of tall, unkempt, parched grass and weeds. The plants were tall enough that, if he laid down, he wouldn't be seen by anyone. He decided to camp there tonight; he was exhausted and tired of running. He lay down, still as a dog, and began licking his sore paw-pads. Tomorrow he would make better time, he would travel farther – he had to, there was no other choice, if he was going to set himself up somewhere secret where no witch, wizard, or dementor would be able to find him. He had to get to the school before too many others.

* * *

The next morning, Sirius woke before full dawn. The stars were gone, the moon had gone down, and the potential sunlight cast a dull gold glow in the sky. It was going to be another hot, rainless day...lovely.

He shifted to his human form and fiddled in his tatty prison robes for the last pieces of bread from the loaf he'd stolen at the Muggle market. After eating a few bites, he found a small, cool stream and, cupping his hands, splashed some water on his face to wake himself and drank some. It burned a cold tunnel down his throat into his stomach, energising him for the rest of the journey ahead. Sighing, he sat back on his haunches and looked up at the sky. The sun was coming up over the horizon now and he had to get going. He bounded off, once again as his Animagus form, running faster with four paws than he ever could with only two feet.

He was quickly out of Little Whinging and out of Surrey, rushing north towards Scotland and towards Hogwarts. He wondered where Harry had gone and if he was alright. He wondered if he knew that Sirius was his godfather. Probably not. It pained him to think of that poor boy, who looked so much like Sirius' brother-in-arms, growing up with those awful Muggles. But he also felt sympathy for the Boy Who Lived. He, too, had grown up with a family so drastically different than he, so oppressive of him, and abusive mentally and verbally. He hoped to Merlin that the Dursleys had never beat Harry the way his mother and father had him. If they had, he swore to go back to Little Whinging and scare them senseless.

Sirius shook his head to try to rid himself of thoughts about Harry, but in truth, they were a great part of the fuel that was keeping him going. Once he had done Peter in, everyone would know he was innocent and he would be able to take Harry away from that awful place, give him a real home. He smiled inwardly to himself as he panted. His paws hardly made a sound as he ran through forests, fields, yards, and across highways and neighbourhood streets.

Sometimes he stopped to rest but these were few and far between – he had to make good time. True enough, the school term didn't start for just a little under a month, but still...he had to find somewhere to hide. He had made it a quarter of the way to the Scottish border by the end of the next day's evening. He had decided to keep running through the night, not being able to find a suitable place to sleep without the Muggle dog-catchers potentially seeing him. Merlin forbid he should be stuck like that; without a wand, he wouldn't be able to get himself out of those pens they kept shelter animals in. At this, he started to think of Lily and all the things she had taught him and James about Muggles and their culture. It all seemed so alien to him, so odd, so out of touch. But at the same time, it fascinated him and there were snippets of information that he had clung to, just in case he might need it later, for some unbeknownst reason. Good thing, too.

* * *

By the end of the next week he had made it to the Scottish border, but had run out of food. He decided to venture into the next town he came to, to see if they had an outside market like the one he had taken the bread from. He would need something to eat along the way, and if it happened to last long enough for him to have a bit once he reached the Highlands, he would count himself more than lucky.

He managed to find a small out-of-doors market and figured he might as well try his luck begging as a starving stray before he just up and stole food. It worked and three of the vendors gave him meat scraps, some bread and a few bowls of water. He wandered around to the other side of the place and began stuffing his cheeks like a chipmunk with food for the most of the rest of the journey ahead of him. One shopkeeper spotted him and chased him off before he was able to take anymore. Just as well – his mouth was almost full to bursting and he really didn't want to choke. He hid behind an old dumpster and an abandoned building, shifting back to a human and cramming the food in his skimpy pockets as best he could before becoming a canine heading north again.

When the towns started to get smaller and further apart, he found a small tree-glen and made camp. The nights were already growing a bit nippy this far north, so he decided to make a fire and roast some of the sausages he had managed to snag. He cursed the fact that he didn't have a wand as he tried to spark the tinder he'd collected for his fire. He finally managed to get a measly one lit and going constant. He ate in silence and in thought – dreadful thoughts of what he planned to do to Peter to make sure he felt every last hatred and pain that Sirius had felt the last twelve years, thoughts of fearing the night to come as nightmares about Azkaban had been plaguing him the past few nights, and the pondering of what Harry was up to now.

* * *

Within another week he had reached the Highlands; the open land and lush green grass and sheep comforted him in some way that only a peaceful, tranquil place could. He slept in a barn on straw rushes the first night before setting off at pelting speed when the shepherd had found him in the morning and waved a shotgun at him. He had had to duck several bullets before he made it into the cover of a neighbour's hedge.

Hiding there for a while for the shepherd to clear off, he sat and listened to his heart beating like an American Indian drum, panting. Soon, a soft, cool, clear voice came from the small alabaster white cottage behind him. He turned and saw a brown thatched roof with smoke flowing out of the chimney, a slender young woman sweeping the front stoop with a stick-broom, singing softly to herself. He cautiously inched his way out of the hedge and towards her, being as quiet as she could. Her singing soothed him, comforted him even more than the surrounding beauty of the land.

She turned her head and saw him, staring at him. Sirius stopped short, crouching down, his tail between his legs and his ears pulled back against his head. He whimpered and she slowly stepped closer. Tilting her head and looking at his side, she saw that his ribs and hips were protruding out of his frame, stretching his skin taught. She made a pitying sound and knelt down in front of him, petting his head gently.

'You poor dear,' she whispered. 'Where did you come from?' Her voice was sweet to the point of saccharine, her Scottish lilt strong but with a hint of a Londoner's accent.

Sirius whimpered again and pawed the ground with one of his front paws, pushing his head up against her hand.

'Let's get you inside and fed, shall we?' the woman said, standing. She turned and began to walk slowly back to the house, looking over her shoulder at him. When he didn't follow she stopped on the front step and patted her leg. 'Well, come on then, love.'

Sirius trotted to her and entered the house after waiting a brief period to see if she wanted to go first. Once inside he saw a large fire in the fireplace to his left, a great cauldron simmering just enough to jostle its lid hanging over it. The woman picked up a wand from the wooden kitchen table and pointed it at the pantry. Salted fish, cured pork, fresh mutton, and a warm loaf of bread soared to the table, soon joined by some cutlery, and began to chop itself up. She then took a great iron ladle and a wooden bowl to the cauldron on the fire and scooped some stew into the bowl.

Once the food on the table was done chopping itself, she put it in another wooden bowl and placed it on the stone floor for Sirius who devoured it hungrily but gratefully. Another bowl, filled with water, was placed beside the food bowl as he scarfed it all down. He wasn't sure, but he thought this might be some of the most delicious food he'd ever tasted, especially for being raw.

The young woman finished her stew and watched Sirius curiously. He could feel her gaze studying him as he lapped up the last of the water. He looked up at her, his moon-grey eyes meeting her bright Highland-green ones.

'Do you have a name, sweetheart?' she cooed, kneeling down next to him and petting his head again. Sirius let out a feeble bark – he thought it sounded more like a yip and knew that, were he human, he would be blushing at the embarassment.

'Well my name's Skye-Lairn.'She held out her hand but immediately felt foolish before being suddenly and pleasantly surprised when Sirius put his paw in her hand. She grasped it softly and shook it twice, ruffling his ears afterward. 'I'll get you something to lay on. After being outside I'm sure you don't want to lay on this old stone floor.' She disappeared into an adjacent room and came back with what looked like a fluffy, soft wool rug. 'Just finished this yesterday,' she said, 'so you'll be the first one to use it.' She looked at him smiling after laying the rug out flat in front of the hearth; Sirius' eyes lit up in what he hoped looked like a dog trying to smile back.

* * *

Sirius slept cozily for most of the day, only being plagued by one bad dream – all the others were about him chasing a great rat around the cottage he was sleeping in, catching it, and biting off its head. It was odd dreaming as a dog, especially when he was still a dog in his dreams. He knew he whimpered and ran on his side when he dreamed; Remus and James had told him so after they dared him to go a whole Saturday as a dog. That was when James had recommended he make the change permanent. Skye-Lairn had woken him in the midst of his bad dream. It was well past sunset and the sky through the open windows was an inky blue, the first stars were beginning to shine.

Another bowl of food was put down for him – stew this time – and another water bowl. Skye had more stew, as well. When she'd finished eating, she stood and stretched, yawning. 'Well, pup,' she said through her yawn, 'I think it's time to turn in.' She grabbed the rug from in front of the hearth and dragged it into the other room, spreading it out at the foot of her brass bedstead.

When Sirius came in and laid down on it, she took a quilt from the wardrobe and lay it over him. He licked her hand in gratitude. She lay down in her own bed, snuggling under the covers. Sirius waited a few hours before he got up and gently climbed into bed with her. She was laying on her side, her knees slightly bent; he stepped in a circle before curling up just behind her legs and laying his head on her knees. She only slightly stirred. He took a deep, calming breath and slept pleasantly the rest of the night.


End file.
